The subject matter of the application relates to a method for producing printed items such as book blocks, books, booklets, magazines and the like. Such items may include a single page printed product, multipage printed products, as well as inserted supplements. The printed products and the supplements are gathered selectively along a gathering section to form loose book blocks, wherein several feeders are arranged along the gathering section for supplying the printed products to receiving locations which follow each other successively along a continuously circulating conveyor.
When producing bound printed items, for example, but not limited to, book blocks, books, telephone books, paperback books, magazines or similar products, different semi-finished products such as signatures or individual printed sheets are normally produced ahead of time during a first production step. The different semi-finished products are then gathered with the aid of a gathering machine into loose book blocks. Subsequently, they are adhesive-bound, wire-stitched or thread-stitched and, if applicable, provided with a cover. In addition, pre-addressed reply cards, CDs/DVDs, illustrations, bags or similar flat products can also be inserted into the printed products, either loosely or adhering to a specific sheet or signature.
Furthermore, digital printing presses for sequentially printing all pages of a book block on paper pulled from a roll are known. These pages are then stacked to form a loose book block and are subsequently bound with the aid a binding machine, arranged downstream in line. Usually, the width of the paper web is multiple times that of the printed sheets, so that the paper web is cut or folded in a longitudinal direction after the printing and is finally also cut in a transverse direction. The resulting printed sheets are then folded and stacked to form a complete, loose book block. Depending on how the folding or cutting takes place, loose book blocks produced in this way include individual pages or folded signatures.
Alternatively, it is also possible to print on individual sheets, already cut to format size, and to stack these individual sheets in the above-described manner to form loose book blocks. In order to insert supplements between the pages of book blocks produced in this way, it is known to open up the book blocks in the loose or bound condition with the aid of a sword and then insert the supplements at those locations. However, this method has the disadvantage that the printed products cannot be opened to the precise page or signature and the supplements can thus not be inserted at the desired location.
According to European patent document EP 1 559 573 A1, a supplement is supplied in a printing press to a sheet or signature prior to the stacking, wherein the supplement rests on the sheet or signature, or is attached to it by adhesive, or adheres to it because of electrostatic attraction. With this method, supplements can be supplied precisely to the desired sheet or signature, but the supplement is in danger of being displaced during the stacking, relative to the signature and/or the stack.